Just the mention of Jules Verne’s name evokes worlds. Those worlds took
shape in his mind, but they were very real all the same. At least, they
were real in the world that was then known. The author used the real
world as a steppingstone and branched out into unknown realms such as
the center of the earth, the moon, and beneath the vast oceans, based
on what current science knew of those areas.

One of Verne’s most compelling characters was Captain Nemo. The
mysterious and moody captain first appeared in Verne’s novel “20,000
Leagues Under the Sea” in 1870. In 1954, Walt Disney Productions
brought Captain Nemo and his great submarine Nautilus to cinematic
life. The movie was a pioneering effort for Walt Disney as well: the
very first all-live-action movie the studio made on its own lot. Stage
3 was built with a water tank to shoot the film, and at the time it was
the largest water tank stage ever constructed.

Chapter 1 opens on a steamship powering across the open sea. Two green
lights flare to life in the depths of the sea and rise to the surface.
The first glimpse of Nautilus shows that the submarine actually
resembles a great beast of the sea, whale-sized but having definite
shark-like and crocodile-like lines. Swiftly and without warning,
Nautilus cuts through the water and slams into the steamship. A shower
of blazing sparks explodes up into the air and the steamship sinks like
a rock.

The story shifts to the streets of San Francisco, where the various
shipping companies offer double wages for sailors to go out onto the
open seas. With a strange “beast” out on the loose and behaving in such
a bloodthirsty manner, none of the sailors want to brave the ocean. The
background of this sequence is amazingly true to life. Ships’ masts
stand out in the distance, giving the impression of a harbor crowded
with sailing vessels. Ned Land (Kirk Douglas) puts in his first
appearance during the argument that shapes up on the streets. Ned has a
saloon girl under each arm. A fight breaks out. Professor Pierre
Arronax (Paul Lukas) is stranded with his aide-de-camp Conseil (Peter
Lorre) in San Francisco. The professor is trying to get back to France
to study new information in his field of oceanography. Interviewed by
the San Francisco reporters looking for a sensational story, Arronax is
deliberately misquoted. The American military approaches Arronax and
makes an offer to take the professor home to France if he will
accompany a ship that’s going in search of the monster. Pulled by his
own curiosity, Arronax agrees. Arronax and Captain Farragut search for
the monster for three-and-a-half months, but find no sign of it.
However, several other sea creatures show up, revealing Disney’s
interests in the real world. Toward the end of the chapter, Ned Land
shows up with a guitar and sings to entertain the ship’s crew,
revealing Disney’s interest in combining music with feature films.

Nautilus puts in another appearance in Chapter 3, attacking a ship and
leaving it to burn to the waterline. While Ned is still singing, the
ship’s crew spots Nautilus and they immediately attack the “creature”
with cannon fire. The sound of the drums beating fills the deck, then
the explosions of the cannon fire roll through the surround sound
system. Unfortunately, the surround sound is a later addition to the
film’s audio track and never quite rises to today’s quality. The
speakers do split and broadcast the sound, but not to an impressive
degree. Nautilus slams into the ship and causes it to sink. During the
action, Arronax and Ned are thrown overboard. Conseil throws himself
overboard after the professor. A thick fog covers the sea as Arronax
and Conseil find Nautilus. They crawl aboard the submarine and discover
the mysteries as well as the impressive technology (for its era) of the
boat. The burial at sea of one of Nemo’s men is otherworldly as they
march along the sea floor with the casket, exactly as the scene was
intended to be. During the burial, Nemo (James Mason) and his men spot
Arronax aboard Nautilus and set out to return quickly to the submarine.

Chapter 4 shows the capture of Arronax, Ned, and Conseil. The clank of
the metal shoes and the hiss of water echo through the submarine as
they come aboard. Nemo is familiar with Arronax’s work and they talk.
Nemo puts Ned and Conseil outside the submarine with the intention of
drowning them when Nautilus goes down, then offers Arronax the
opportunity to stay with the crew. Arronax chooses to stay with his
friends and is nearly drowned, but Nemo brings them all back in. Later
in the chapter, Esmeralda the seal puts in an appearance as Nemo’s pet.
The banquet feast is humorous as the newest arrivals to Nautilus find
out the true nature of the meal they enjoy.

Chapter 5 contains more fantastic underwater scenery. The hiss and
bubbling of the air tanks are a nice touch, adding depth and reality to
the environment. The sunken ship scene where Ned and Conseil find the
treasure chest hits an adventurous stride, especially with the shark
swimming around. Chapter 6 features Ned in an attempt to steal some of
the treasure Nemo has aboard the sub. To cover his larceny, he ends up
singing to Esmeralda the seal, and the scene switches instantly from
suspenseful to comic as Ned and the seal play so well together.

Chapter 7’s battle between Nautilus and a ship is excellent, especially
by the standards of the time at which “20,000 Leagues” was made.
Miniatures took the place of the ship and the submarine, but the
effects look real, with debris floating from the ship into the
heartless depths of the sea. The attack also spurs conflict between Ned
and Arronax as they become divided over what kind of person Captain
Nemo really is. Chapter 10 contains striking and scary scenes where
water floods into the submarine. In no time, Nautilus continues on
toward on the bottom of the sea while the boat continues to take on
water. The crushing weight of the sea closes in.

The famous fight with the gigantic squid takes place in Chapter 10 as
well. The initial shoot was a disaster, as revealed in the interview
with director Richard Fleischer. Walt Disney stepped into the arena and
had a new squid built, and the scene was rewritten to take place in a
storm. Reshooting the new scene cost a million dollars, which was not
in the budget.

The bonus material included on the two-disc set is amazing. Director
Fleischer’s commentary about the film is insightful, discussing the
difficulties in shooting it, what was going on at Walt Disney
Productions at the time, and the rivalry that went on between Walt and
Fleischer’s father, animator Max Fleischer, who also had a studio
featuring animated projects, including the Superman cartoons. Years
later, Richard Fleischer directed another “underwater” SF classic
called “Fantastic Voyage,” albeit this time, the vast sea and unknown
world became a journey through the human body in a miniaturized sub.

“The Sunset Squid Sequence” features the squid fight near the end of
the movie that had to be shot again and pushed the picture way over
budget. After watching the sequence, the viewer will immediately know
why the scene was changed. The “Touring The Nautilus” featurette is a
nice piece of work, splicing diagrams with sets and with actual footage
from the finished movie.

The documentary on the Humboldt squid, the model for the movie’s beast,
is interesting and dynamic. “Jules Verne & Walt Disney: Explorers
of the Imagination” is an excellent piece on these two pioneers of
entertainment. Several science fiction writers offer their views on
both the book and film versions of “20,000 Leagues Under The Sea.”
After viewing the movie, film aficionados interested in all things
cinematic should definitely take the time to watch “The Making of
‘20,0000 Leagues Under The Sea.’” Walt Disney actually risked the
empire he was building by investing in the film so heavily. At the
time, “20,000 Leagues Under The Sea” was the most expensive film ever
made, surpassing even “Gone With The Wind,” and the underwater scenes
had more people filmed underwater than had even been done by the United
States Navy.

“20,000 Leagues Under The Sea” is a fascinating movie. Unfortunately,
the film is almost 50 years old and much of the technology in the movie
has been surpassed these days. Present-day audiences probably won’t be
as awed by it as the theater audiences in 1954, but the story and the
acting are still compelling. The additional features make the two-disc
a must-have for movie fans, and the movie is a great addition to the
family film collection.

more details

sound format:

English Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound; THX Certified

aspect ratio(s):

2.55:1, Enhanced for 16x9 Televisions

special features:

All-New
Audio Commentaries With Director Richard Fleischer And Classic Film
Historian/Author Rudy Behlmer; Radio Spots (original radio spots from
1954 feature); Peter Lorre’s ADR Tracks (gives the listener a glimpse
into the process of dialogue replacement for the scenes before they
were trimmed and edited into the feature film); Captain Nemo’s Organ
Music; The Making of “20,000 Leagues Under The Sea” Featurette; Jules
Verne & Walt Disney—Explorers Of The Imagination Behind-The-Scenes
Featurette; The Humbolt Squid: A Real Sea Monster!; The Musical Legacy
Of Paul Smith; Touring the Nautilus; Lost Treasure: The Sunset Squid
Sequence; Disney Studio Album; Monsters Of The Deep; Script Excerpt:
Nemo’s Death; Production Gallery; Trims; Movie Merchandise; Themed
Cartoon (theatrical animated short “Grand Canyonscape,” which was
presented as part of the theatrical release); Theatrical Trailer;
English Closed-Captioning